Influence of PODE1 Additive on Ethanol-Gasoline Blend (E10) Properties
Published on May 8th, 2023
In a recent study published in Heliyon mega journal, researchers from China, Iraq, Malaysia and Bahrain investigated the impact of adding polyoxymethylene dimethyl ether (PODE1) to ethanol-gasoline blends (E10) on fuel properties and phase stability.
Polyoxymethylene dimethyl ethers (PODEn, n = 1–8) are considered promising alternative fuel additives due to their high oxygen content, low carbon-to-hydrogen ratio, and lack of carbon-carbon bonds in their chemical structure, which may lead to reduced soot emissions. Among the PODEn group, PODE1 has been found to significantly lower soot emissions compared to other PODEn (n = 2–8) when blended with fuels.
The researchers examined the effects of adding PODE1 to E10 on various fuel properties, including distillation curve, octane number, phase stability, carbon-oxygen-hydrogen (C/O/H) ratio, heat of combustion, kinematic viscosity, and density. The study found that:
1 The blended fuels of E10 and PODE1 are stable up to 10% PODE1, with no phase separation observed.
2 Adding up to 10% PODE1 to E10 had no significant impact on the fuel properties, particularly the boiling point and octane number.
These findings suggest that PODE1 could be a promising additive to gasoline-ethanol blends, contributing to reducing soot emissions from gasoline direct injection (GDI) engines without significantly affecting the fuel properties.
The researchers believe that this work offers creative points by proposing a new candidate for additive fuel to gasoline-ethanol blends, which could help in meeting stricter emission regulations and improving the performance of internal combustion engines.